53.10—Claims not allowed.
(a)
The Department will not allow claims arising under the terms of this part if the payee has not complied with all quarantine requirements.
(b)
Expenses for the care and feeding of animals held for destruction will not be paid by the Department, unless the payment of such expense is specifically authorized or approved by the Administrator.
(c)
The Department will not allow claims arising out of the destruction of animals or materials unless they shall have been appraised as prescribed in this part and the owners thereof shall have executed a written agreement to the appraisals.
(d)
The Department will not allow claims arising out of the destruction of animals or materials which have been moved or handled by the owner thereof or its officer, employee, or agent, acting within the scope of his or its office, employment or agency, in violation of a law or regulation administered by the Secretary for the prevention of the introduction into or the dissemination within the United States of any communicable disease of livestock or poultry for which the animal or material was destroyed, or in violation of a law or regulation for the enforcement of which the Secretary enters or has entered into a cooperative agreement for the control and eradication of such disease.
(e)
The Department will not allow claims arising out of the destruction of fish due to infectious salmon anemia (ISA) unless the claimants have agreed in writing to participate fully in the cooperative ISA control program administered by APHIS and the State of Maine. Participants in the ISA control program must:
(1)
Establish and maintain a veterinary client-patient relationship with an APHIS accredited veterinarian and inform the ISA Program Veterinarian in writing of the name of their accredited veterinarian at the time the participant enrolls in the ISA program and within 15 days of any change in accredited veterinarians.
(2)
Cooperate with and assist in periodic on-site disease surveillance, testing, and reporting activities for ISA, which will be conducted by their APHIS accredited veterinarian or a State or Federal official as directed by the ISA Program Veterinarian.
(3)
Develop and implement biosecurity protocols for use at all participant-leased finfish sites and participant-operated vessels engaged in aquaculture operations throughout Maine. A copy of these protocols shall be submitted to the ISA Program Veterinarian at the time the participant enrolls in the ISA program and within 15 days of any change in the protocols.
(4)
Develop, with the involvement of the participant's accredited veterinarian and the fish site health manager, a site-specific ISA action plan for the control and management of ISA. A copy of the action plan shall be submitted to APHIS for review at the time the participant enrolls in the ISA program and within 15 days of any change in the action plan.
(5)
Participate in the State of Maine's integrated pest management (IPM) program for the control of sea lice on salmonids. A copy of the management plan developed by the participant for the State IPM program shall be submitted to APHIS for review at the time the participant enrolls in the ISA program and within 15 days of any change in the management plan.
(6)
Submit to the ISA Program Veterinarian at the time the participant enrolls in the ISA program a complete and current fish inventory information for each participant-leased finfish site with site and cage identifiers. Fish inventory information must include the numbers, age, date of saltwater transfer, vaccination status, and previous therapeutant history for all fish in each participant-leased finfish site.
(7)
Maintain, and make available to the ISA Program Veterinarian upon request, mortality data for each participant-leased finfish site and pen in production.
(8)
Cooperate with and assist APHIS in the completion of biosecurity audits at all participant-leased finfish sites and participant-operated vessels involved in salmonid aquaculture.
(f)
The Department will not allow claims arising out of the destruction of fish due to spring viremia of carp (SVC) unless the claimants have done the following:
(1)
Depopulated all SVC-infected and SVC-exposed fish on their property under the supervision of USDA or State officials;
(2)
Thoroughly cleaned and disinfected all affected sites and all affected equipment under the supervision of USDA or State officials;
(3)
If an affected site is to be restocked after cleaning and disinfection, the claimant must have done the following:
(i)
Restocked with fish certified free of SVC by an APHIS-approved laboratory or in accordance with the diagnostic procedures described in the Office of International des Epizooties Manual of Diagnostic Tests For Aquatic Animals;
(ii)
Demonstrated that their water sources are from first-use spring water, spring water without fish, well water, ozone or ultraviolet treated surface water, or bore-hole water and are free of wild carp and any other SVC-susceptible species; and
(iii)
Prevented the migration of wild carp and any other wild SVC-susceptible species into their farming establishment.
(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number 0579-0192)